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Wow! This is one the most distinguished audiences I have ever met… Hi, I’m Erin, Erin Gruwell, but my students call me Ms. G. It is a real pleasure to be here with all of you. Let me tell you about myself. I was the obnoxious cheerleader in high school. I grew up in a large house in a gated community. I had nurturing, loving parents, especially my father. My father meant the world to me. He gave me these pearls that I wearing right now.
I set off for college, thinking I was going to become a lawyer someday. But, things changed after I watched the unfolding of the Rodney King riots back in the early 90s (1990s for those of you who are not from this century). Watching the riots made me realize that working as a lawyer meant I was catching these kids after it was already too late. I wanted to make a different in their lives before they reached the court system. This is when I decided to become an English teacher.
I accepted a position as a freshman English teacher at Wilson High School in Long Beach, CA. I was in culture shock there. I knew nothing about being chased down the street and beaten because of the color of my skin, but my students did. I have never watched a friend die from a bullet wound. Yet, many of my students had.
Naively, I showed up to my first day of school in a polka dot dress and pearls. I honestly expecting my students fall in love with the literary masterpieces I brought in with me. Instead, my students thought I was “way out there” and “odd” and didn’t trust me. Not only did they not want to read about Shakespeare and other dead white guys, they didn’t want to read them with me.
My new challenge was to draw connections between these important literary works and my student’s daily lives. I tried to bridge this gap by connecting their lives to themes in The Diary of Anne Frank, Zlata’s Diary, Durango Street, and Romeo and Juliet. We would read, draw, journal, watch movies, go on field trips, and host guest speakers. Soon, my students would say, “Ms. G, you alright.”
I started a journaling project because I wanted my students to think deeply about the complexity, emotions, and richness of their own journey. I wanted them to pick up a pen, not a gun.
Do you journal? I want to hear more about your journey.
More about me: Here's one of my books, Teach With Your Heart, that I think teachers will really enjoy reading. If you want to read an except of this book, click here.
How my work relates to Educational Psychology: Chapter 2
I believe in the importance of keeping my student's active. The textbook talks about how "manipulating concrete objects helps children understand abstract relationships" (p. 70). I ensured my students were actively constructing knowledge, and I am there to help them test their knowledge. Our journal writing project that led to a published book was an example of active learning. Here's a link to a video of news coverage about my teaching: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zz3TZH-CCS4
Wow! This is one the most distinguished audiences I have ever met… Hi, I’m Erin, Erin Gruwell, but my students call me Ms. G. It is a real pleasure to be here with all of you.
Let me tell you about myself. I was the obnoxious cheerleader in high school. I grew up in a large house in a gated community. I had nurturing, loving parents, especially my father. My father meant the world to me. He gave me these pearls that I wearing right now.
I set off for college, thinking I was going to become a lawyer someday. But, things changed after I watched the unfolding of the Rodney King riots back in the early 90s (1990s for those of you who are not from this century). Watching the riots made me realize that working as a lawyer meant I was catching these kids after it was already too late. I wanted to make a different in their lives before they reached the court system. This is when I decided to become an English teacher.
I accepted a position as a freshman English teacher at Wilson High School in Long Beach, CA. I was in culture shock there. I knew nothing about being chased down the street and beaten because of the color of my skin, but my students did. I have never watched a friend die from a bullet wound. Yet, many of my students had.
Naively, I showed up to my first day of school in a polka dot dress and pearls. I honestly expecting my students fall in love with the literary masterpieces I brought in with me. Instead, my students thought I was “way out there” and “odd” and didn’t trust me. Not only did they not want to read about Shakespeare and other dead white guys, they didn’t want to read them with me.
My new challenge was to draw connections between these important literary works and my student’s daily lives. I tried to bridge this gap by connecting their lives to themes in The Diary of Anne Frank, Zlata’s Diary, Durango Street, and Romeo and Juliet. We would read, draw, journal, watch movies, go on field trips, and host guest speakers. Soon, my students would say, “Ms. G, you alright.”
I started a journaling project because I wanted my students to think deeply about the complexity, emotions, and richness of their own journey. I wanted them to pick up a pen, not a gun.
Do you journal? I want to hear more about your journey.
More about me:
Here's one of my books, Teach With Your Heart, that I think teachers will really enjoy reading. If you want to read an except of this book, click here.
Resources/Links/References:
http://www.freedomwritersfoundation.org/fw-outreach-EG
How my work relates to Educational Psychology:
Chapter 2
I believe in the importance of keeping my student's active. The textbook talks about how "manipulating concrete objects helps children understand abstract relationships" (p. 70). I ensured my students were actively constructing knowledge, and I am there to help them test their knowledge. Our journal writing project that led to a published book was an example of active learning. Here's a link to a video of news coverage about my teaching:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zz3TZH-CCS4